If you have a problem with fungal toenails, the arrival of swimming weather and sunny days at the beach may bring you nothing but anxiety: You make excuses for not jumping into that beautiful blue water, and shopping for summer shoes becomes a chore as you search for a style that hides your toes. Don’t go through another season sitting on the sidelines because you feel self-conscious; Great Neck Family Foot Care in Long Island offers full-service treatments to restore your toenails to health and permit you to immediately step into barefoot weather without a second thought.

A few words about toenail fungus

Onychomycosis (“on-i-ko-my-KO-sis”) is a fungal infection of the toenail. It is transmitted by direct contact with the fungal organism, which thrives in warm, moist environments. All parts of the nail are vulnerable to this fungal infection, including the nail bed, nail plate, and underlying nail matrix. Anyone can catch this fungus, but people with circulatory disorders or compromised immune systems are at special risk. In addition to causing physical pain and eventual disfigurement, this unsightly fungal infection also inflicts a heavy psychological toll.

Before laser treatment was developed, nail fungus was difficult to eradicate. Clinical treatments involved oral medication with a spotty track record of side effects and drug interactions, or topical nail polish or ointments that had to be applied over the course of a full year. Fortunately, those less-than-ideal treatments are in the past now, since laser treatment options are available. Dr. Alec Hochstein offers two different types of FDA-approved laser treatment technology in his Great Neck, NY office:

Noveon Laser Treatment, by Nomir, is a brand-new system that uses two different wavelengths of light to destroy the fungal cells without generating excess heat in your tissues. The lasers are controlled by smart technology that guides the light beams to the points that they are needed, and their efficient delivery system can treat up to 4 toes simultaneously.

Manufactured in California, the Cool Touch laser treatment system also uses laser light beams. Previously in wide use to treat varicose veins and acne scarring, Cool Touch Laser Treatment was approved by the FDA in 2011 for the painless regrowth of clear, healthy nail tissue.

Treatment with either of these systems takes 15 to 30 minutes, and your care team at Great Neck Family Foot Care will make recommendations about whether you need to come in for a followup treatment. Our lasers are always on-site here in our Long Island office because our practice owns them – so you never have to make separate appointments or undergo extra delays. All our instruments are steam sterilized for your protection.

The effects of your first treatment will be evident in as little as several weeks, or it may take up to a few months. No anesthetic or bandaging is needed, since no foreign material or chemicals are introduced into the body. You can stop in for a short appointment and continue on with your day, with no after-effects.

Cool, Painless Technology

While you may have heard of laser treatments that produce heat, those belonged to an earlier generation of medical lasers that used a heat-related technique known as “ablation.” Our FDA-approved treatments use an entirely different lightwave technology called “photo inactivation,” which kills fungal cells without any buildup of heat. For this reason, you will not experience any discomfort during your treatment here in our Long Island, NY clinic.

Many people need only one treatment, but in some cases one or two followup laser appointments are needed. The team at Great Neck Family Foot Care will provide a full evaluation of your particular situation, and will guide you through the whole process.

Even the most sophisticated laser treatments take time to heal damaged tissues, and toenails grow slowly. Meanwhile, summer is here and you need your feet to look attractive right now. The KeryFlex Nail Restoration System is an in-office cosmetic technology that restores the natural appearance of your nails in just a short time.

Dr. Alec Hochstein and the care team at Great Neck Family Foot Care will gently remove the damaged portions of your old nail, and will use a special medical polymer resin to create a breathable, permanent new nail that is indistinguishable from your own healthy, natural nails. This polymer is “set” by two minutes of ultraviolet light, and it will flex in the same way as your natural nails. With your KeryFlex nails in place, you can swim, bathe, walk barefoot — even use nail polish! Meanwhile, your own natural nail is regrowing in a healthy way behind the KeryFlex nail surface.

Full-service Podiatry Care in Long Island, New York

While your nails are healing, we provide sterile pedicures so that your feet will always look their best. Great Neck Family Foot Care is a full-service practice, and we provide consultation, treatment and maintenance in a full-arc of patient support.

Call us today for an appointment at (516) 482-5999. Packages are available for Laser Nail Treatment and KeryFlex.